Lawsuit alleges Kroger falsely claimed chickens were raised humanely

U.S. grocery chain Kroger has been hit with a lawsuit, with the plaintiff alleging Kroger falsely claimed its Simple Truth chicken products used only birds raised according to certain animal welfare standards. The case -- Anna Ortega v. The Kroger Co. --  was filed February 12 in Superior Court of California in Los Angeles County.
Ortega alleges that the Simple Truth labeling states the birds were raised in a "humane environment." Ortega claims the chickens, raised by Perdue Farms, were handled using practices such as electrically stunning birds prior to slaughter.
Kroger spokesman Keith Dailey told Reuters that the company has not had an opportunity to review the lawsuit. "What we have on our Simple Truth chicken label is information for our customers that we believe is accurate, and we intend to vigorously defend our label," Dailey said.